Different Christmases - By Vicky
When I was 18, my family stopped celebrating Christmas because of a tragedy. What had been a joyous, traditional family time ceased to exist and it was no longer a holiday when family gathered. Over the years, I spent Christmases skiing or working in some foreign country where Christmas might be barely acknowledged, or going to a movie to avoid the Day. Oh, the parties were fine but I usually skipped the Day.
Then, about ten years ago, a new tradition established itself. It was quite by accident too. A confirmed Manhattanite, I bought a 1762 weekend house in Connecticut and loved the country so much that I began to spend more and more of my time there. The house in winter was straight out of Currier and Ives, there was usually snow, and it screamed for Christmas trees, wreaths on the front gate, and welcome lights in all the windows. However, to decorate a house and not entertain is not only no fun but a waste not to share so I decided I would have a Christmas Day open house.
My thought was that I’d get a few strays with nothing else to do, a few people on their way to or from family get togethers, and my close friends. We would all eat too much, drink too much with the intention of just getting through the Day.
My theory on parties is to serve a lot of good meats, breads and cheeses along with copious amounts of booze. To hell with the veggie platters and boring things because no one really likes eating them anyway. And, with great ham, seafood, beef and relishes, who needs them? So, it was an easy enough party to plan for and do on my own.
The first year, invitations went out that the hours were 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. At precisely 1 p.m., people started arriving and, surprisingly, most stayed for the duration. That year there were about thirty in total. Every year after, the numbers grew …and they grew.
It seemed a lot of people didn’t ‘do’ Christmas either, but now they did it at my house.
People brought their dogs, which was fine because it’s the country and that’s what people do. People brought relatives. People brought friends. It was a tiny little house and many a time the only place to sit was on the staircase. Some wore velvet and some wore jeans, and it didn’t matter. Odd Bob, the handy man, did manage clean jeans but he never ever took off his fur hat with the flaps down. He kept the fires going downstairs and made a mean shrimp dip too. That was the year he met a famous orchestra conductor’s wife in the kitchen and fell in love. It was unrequited but I think they both had a rather good time flirting too. There was the year with no snow until mid-afternoon when a mini-blizzard started. The dogs were out on the lawn leaping into the air catching snowflakes. It was also about the time I fell in love with Christmas.
I sold the house, and last year I found myself living in Scotland where invites came to not one but three parties exactly as I’d given in Connecticut. The decorations were a little different as was the food, but it had the same feeling, and I finally learned that wherever you are in the world, Christmas can be a special time. Some of us aren’t blessed with a family to share it with, but it doesn’t mean we can’t share Christmas at all.
I’m not certain what this year will bring yet, but I know one thing …somewhere there will be a party and Christmas will be just fine.
By Vicky
Christmas Receipe - US - Memphis style - the GritAlright, I should point out from the start that this isn't my favorite recipe. However, I make it every year for our huge Christmas party, and it's the first thing to run out. It's so popular, I make a double batch and we put it out in two places to cut down on the crowding. This started as a Martha Stewart recipe from her Hors D'Oeuvres cookbook. If you have parties, or just like to eat finger food, I highly recommend this book. Of course, since my wife hates Martha with a passion, I had to take the dust jacket off and burn it. Sorry Martha.
A word of warning.
This dish is so fattening, just reading the recipe may raise your cholesterol level.
What you need:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 small sweet onion (or 2 shallots) minced
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more to taste, or hot sauce, or anything with the heat you like)
1/4 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning (I usually put in a bit more, but that's what I wrote down)
1 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 cup heavy cream (you should have some more on hand in case you want to thin the dip a bit)
8 ounces whipped cream cheese
4 ounces sharp white Cheddar cheese shredded (you can use any color you want, but white keeps the color more attractive)
3 tablespoons lemon juice (fresh is great, but bottled will do)
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce (don't skimp on this, use a name brand)
10 ounces lump crab meat (or whatever comes close, don't forget to pick it over for cartilage)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley (if you can't get fresh in the winter, use fine chopped green onion)
2 crust less slices of white bread torn into bits (you can also use bread crumbs, or just leave this out)
1/2 teaspoon paprika (don't skimp on this either, use a good quality paprika, if you can't get that add a tad bit more hot spice)
OK, honestly I don't measure all those spices out. I've made this stuff often enough that I just shake it out directly into the pot. You've got a lot of leeway because the cheese and cream are the center of the dish.
Now let us cook.
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees (F) and get your serving bowl out, which should be oven proof. It's nice if you have one that goes over a candle, although this stuff is usually gone before it has a chance to get cold.
Melt the butter in the appropriate sized sauce pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook it until it's soft. Add in the dry spices and stir it up good. Add the cream and stir it some more.
Next, you're going to slowly mix in the cream cheese, and then the Cheddar cheese until it's all nice and melted together. Keep an eye on the heat setting, it may need to be adjusted.
When it's nicely combined, add most of the parsley and the wet spices. Turn off the heat. Mix it really good. Gently fold in the crab meat. The point here is not to break it up too much.
Get it into your baking dish. Sprinkle the bread bits on top, with maybe a few dots of butter. Bake it for 20 minutes or so, until the top is lightly brown and its hot all the way through. You can get to this point up to an hour before party time, and let it rest in the warm oven.
Put the rest of the parsley on top, with a shake or two of paprika before serving. I put out bagel chips, baked pita chips, and some toast points to go with it. It's also wise to leave some spoons next to this as a hint not to double dip :)
This is a great basic recipe. I've tried several variants: different cheese, different spices, added some shrimp, and such. As long as you follow the melting cheese into milk central theme, it's hard to go too far wrong.
Enjoy (but don't blame me for your weight gain),
the Grit
Christmas Tradition – UK - the Brit
Despite the fact that most of the commercial organisations over here are trying to start Christmas earlier than ever, it really starts in earnest in the UK early in December.
Firstly step in the tradition, is the buying of the decorations, streamers, baubles and lights. Of course, there is also a lot of holly to give the natural look. These are all liberally spread around the house to give a good Christmas feel. With this, one also needs to buy the tree, which usually takes pride of place in the lounge, adorned with crackers, tinsel, lights and little packets, usually of chocolate.
Most people gather all the presents around the base of the tree and in the two weeks coming up to Christmas Eve, this pile of multi-coloured presents grows almost daily. Of course, this is a test of temptation, especially for the children of the house and often a parent will catch one having a sneaky look during the night. The tension and expectation builds up through the month, with even adults hardly able to contain themselves sometimes.
Santa’s grottos start sprouting up in all of the shopping complexes and the air is filled with children’s noises. In the evening, the ritual of carol singers begin, some just a group of children wanting to make a few pounds for shopping, others more formal Church carol singers, some with bands. For the last two weeks before Christmas, everywhere you go comes the sounds of carols, accompanied with the sound of retail tills as present after present disappears from shop shelves.
The week before Christmas, the real reason for the celebrations begins to emerge, with Church services throughout the land. Christmas Eve sees all the Church doors open for midnight carol services. The tills are finally quiet and the air filled with joy and thanksgiving.
In some households, Dad usually dresses up as Santa and, once the children are asleep, creeps through the house with a stocking full of gifts for each of the children, leaving them at the foot of their beds. (Sometimes the adult children are included in this as well.)
Christmas morning starts with a flurry of present unwrapping activity and squeaks of joy as everyone discovers what they have been brought, then the kitchen becomes standing room only as a made cooking dash to get the Turkey dinner and Christmas pudding final preparations are made. Christmas dinner is accompanied with crackers being pulled and the participants wearing silly hats and telling even sillier “cracker” jokes. Then, after the 3:pm Queens speech has been watched, there is time for a couple of hours rest before the teatime marathon begins. This is a mix of sweet cakes, including the Christmas cakes, mince pies and a host of other goodies. Of alcohol is flowing most of the day as well.
The beauty of Christmas day is that it is the one occasion during the year when families in the main, get together and enjoy being with each other; when past differences are forgotten for a while at least.
We do try and remember our neighbours at Christmas, particularly those who might be on their own during this festive occasion and such people will often be asked to join with families during Christmas day.
the Brit
